With Edelman Sidelined, Amendola Came Through For the Patriots

Patriots receiver Danny Amendola hasn't seen much action this season, but Sunday against the Jets New England needed him to step up and try and give this team a spark with Julian Edelman out with a concussion.

It was a perfect opportunity for Amendola to come out and put up a big performance in Edelman's absence, and he did about as much as could be expected against a Jets defense that didn't give Tom Brady much time to throw him the football early on.

In the first half Brady and the offense looked flat, while instead, Amendola was one of the few guys playing with any fire and the veteran receiver looked like a rookie in the fourth quarter of a preseason game playing faster than the guys around him in an effort to earn a roster spot.

Danny Amendola had a solid outing Sunday in New York. (USA TODAY Images)

Brady was a perfect 3-of-3 targeting him for 27 yards through the first two quarters, two of which went for first downs. His 39-yard punt return to open the second quarter helped set the Patriots up at the Jets 36-yard line, and from there Tom Brady orchestrated a 6-play, 36 yard drive - with a key third down converted by Amendola in the middle of it - to help set up Rob Gronkowski's 3-yard touchdown reception and gave New England their first points of the day.

He followed that up with a 47-yard kickoff return that was negated by a holding penalty by Brandon Bolden on their ensuing possession, which would have given the Patriots the ball at their own 46-yard line. Instead, they had to start from their own eight.

But he was trying, and it was painfully obvious for a portion of the first half that he was the only one out there playing with any urgency.

Brady also appeared flat initially, and he was taking a beating after the Jets defense got to him repeatedly early on and had him clearly frustrated. He was sacked four times in the first half, and he started getting very vocal on the sideline with his offensive line as the Jets had come out and were taking it to them.

Not that Brady was surprised. That's usually how it's gone when he's come to New York.

"It's always tough to get a win here," said Brady after the game. "They're a good team. They always play us pretty hard and we got their best today. We obviously didn't do a very good job there in the first three quarters. We found a little rhythm there in the second half and got some points on the board, made some plays at the end. So it's about making the critical plays and we found a way to do it."

Amendola played a part in that. Brady was a perfect 2-of-2 for 14 yards and two first downs throwing him the football on 3rd down Sunday, including another huge conversion on their game winning drive to move the chains thanks to a 7-yard completion that the receiver managed to muster just enough to get the ball to the marker.

From there Bolden managed to turn a 3rd-and-1 into a 17-yard gain to drive the nail in the coffin and allow Brady to kneel down and run out the clock.

According to ESPN Boston's Mike Reiss, Amendola played 44 snaps on Sunday, well above his average of 26 and the most he's had since the 45 he played against Denver back in Week 9. Prior to that his largest total was 61 back in Week 1 in their loss to Miami.

Overall he finished the day with 8 catches for 63 yards, with his reception total leading all other receivers. Not a huge day by any means, but considering he finished with more catches than even Rob Gronkowski, it's a performance that certainly can't be overlooked. He's done all the right things to this point and the veteran has made the effort to help out in the return game this season, which has paid dividends to this point as it's allowed Edelman a little less wear and tear, which will hopefully allow him to be a little fresher heading into the postseason.

For now Amendola continues to try and contribute and give his team as much as he can, and fortunately on Sunday for the Patriots, it was just enough for them to walk out of MetLife Stadium with a win.

"That's why we work so hard, so we can get out there and play," Amendola told ESPN Boston. "We work really hard together and the good thing about this team is that there are no selfish players out here. I wasn't out there counting snaps, just trying to get my job done."

And thanks to some of the little things he did, the Patriots clinched a first round bye and are still in control of their own destiny for home field in the postseason.